Femme Fatale
Page 16
* * * *
The guard watched with mild curiosity as the minibus pulled to a stop at the curb on Mohammed Cheikh Saadi Boulevard. The doors opened and one attractive woman after another started climbing out of the vehicle. Within moments, the minibus, now empty of passengers, drove away leaving its cargo of eleven female beauties behind.
‘Perhaps a tour group of fashion models,’ thought the guard as he admired the group.
To his surprise, the women turned and marched directly towards where he stood behind the gate.
“Bonjour,” said the attractive blonde at the head of the group. “This is the Consulate General of France?”
“Oui,” said the guard. “How can I help you?”
“We are all French citizens,” replied the blonde, reading a prepared statement. “We were kidnapped in Paris, smuggled to Morocco and forced to work in a brothel run by a Moroccan businessman named Mustapha Kaddur. We wish to file formal complaints and request the assistance of our country to have Mr. Kaddur arrested, tried and imprisoned for his crimes. At this time, we also request shelter and safe passage back to France, our country of residence.”
* * * *
The BMW X5 came to a stop in front of the VIP Pavilion at Al Massira Airport.
“Have a safe flight home,” said Carlos from the front passenger seat. “Leslie and Chris, it was nice to meet you though we wish it had been under better circumstances.”
“It was nice to meet the two of you as well,” Leslie replied. “On behalf of the Petit family, I thank you from the bottom of my heart for all you have already done.”
“We are sorry for your loss,” Jorge replied, “And will make sure Henri did not die in vain. We will find out where Kaddur’s other brothels are located and make sure his victims are safely returned home.”
“You’re sure you’re good with this?” asked Jonathan.
“Discussions are already underway with the Moroccan state police and they are not taking this situation lightly,” said Carlos, “And Mo has agreed to help with required equipment and delivery. Go back to Paris.”
“Keep me posted,” said Jonathan as he opened the door.
Jonathan, Chris and Leslie climbed out of the SUV then watched it as it drove away before heading into the pavilion and their plane beyond.
Chapter 13 – Saturday, June 9, 2012
The week which had followed Leslie’s return to Paris from Morocco had been a whirlwind of emotion and activity as she shared in the Petit family’s grief and joy resulting from the Kaddur affair and its final outcome.
Dominique, Corinne and the four other rescued women had supplied what information they could to the authorities about their abductions which had culminated in a clandestine rescue effort led by Henri Petit with assistance by what was determined to be unidentified hired mercenaries. Official reports from Spanish naval officials corroborated the women’s account of events. This, combined with the incident involving eleven French kidnapped women who had presented themselves at the consulate in Agadir had quickly led to the formation of a Moroccan/French task force to investigate Mustapha Kaddur. The rescue of the women in Agadir was suspected to be related to the same group of mercenaries who had assisted Petit in Casablanca.
Raids had been conducted on Kaddur’s business and properties and anonymous tips had resulted in the discovery of two additional brothels in Casablanca and Marrakech where nineteen other kidnapped women had been found. A number of arrests had already been made, including that of Kaddur’s assistant, Youssef Dris and Anouar Hamdi, president of the Trans-Med Shipping Company. An arrest warrant had been issued for Mustapha Kaddur but he had yet to be found.
Well respected in various cultural, public and military circles, the news of Henri Petit’s death had sent shockwaves throughout the city and beyond. His body had been returned to Paris by military transport during the weekend and a service held the following Tuesday had been attended by numerous dignitaries, celebrities and high ranking military personnel. Jacqueline Lefebvre had firmly maintained her decision to have her husband, Normand, buried without service following his suicide. His involvement in Kaddur’s affairs was also under investigation.
Though Chris and Jonathan, accompanied by Sandy and Josée, had attended Henri’s service, they had otherwise chosen to maintain a distance and let Leslie and the family grieve in peace, spending a few days visiting the wonderful city of lights instead.
* * * *
Though the temperature was rising in his steel cell when Mustapha Kaddur awoke, he was no longer able to shake the chills which had ravaged him all night. The single blanket wrapped around his otherwise naked body did little against the nightly cold. He could see that it was daylight, thanks to the handful of one inch diameter holes punched through the ceiling some eight feet above where he lay. However, he had no idea where he was or, if he had once known, he no longer had the energy to remember.
He actually didn’t remember much of recent days and had no clue how long he had been in his ten by eight steel box. He knew he had been there long enough that the loaf of crusty bread and slab of cheese he had initially found had been gone for days. All that remained of his water supply was the empty plastic bottle. His memory of the past was becoming increasingly jumbled, his thoughts confused. Perhaps he needed to eat something. Where was the bread and cheese he had found earlier?
At times, he was certain he had been drugged, he clearly remembered the men with the syringes, but such thoughts left his scattered mind as quickly as they came. His recollections of recent days came in flashes, like rapid miniature movies in which he saw different men, asking him questions, a beautiful redhead, April, men asking other questions.
He drifted off again or perhaps not. He was no longer sure what was real and what he imagined. He wanted to rise but didn’t have the strength to do so. He smiled as he remembered the nice man with the grey hair and beard who gave him water when he told him about his brothels. He hoped the man would give him some water soon because he was incredibly thirsty.
He was so very tired and he ached all over. He would have to meet Barry again to discuss the villa. April would surely be there and they could have a party. He wondered why the driver asked so many questions. He really should eat something but he was so tired. Perhaps he should sleep a bit…
* * * *
An adventurous traveller in Morocco might decide to take N9 road and head south, going through small towns such as Zagora, Tamegroute and further still, Tagounite. At this point, such a traveller might likely decide to go on to the end of the N9 and head on to the tiny village of Mhamid.
Many believe that beyond Mhamid, all our traveller would find is the sands of the Sahara, the occasional shepherd and a few caravan trails. However, if our traveller headed southeast into the desert, approximately forty kilometres towards the border to Algeria, he or she might be surprised to find an old, tan cargo container, not easy to spot amidst the dunes.
Though this is not likely to happen as the barren area is rarely visited, if it did, our traveller would have found the final resting place of Mustapha Kaddur.
Other Books by Claude Bouchard
Available for your Kindle at
Amazon.com ~ Amazon.co.uk
Vigilante
Book 1 of the Vigilante Series
Montreal . . . the long, hot summer of 1996. . . and in the dark of night, moving like a shadowy wraith, a vigilante prowls the city's streets. The targets of his bloody rampage: the worst of the worst. . . Murderers. Gangbangers. Rapists. Six months. Sixteen murders. The harried police are still without a clue . . . until the day they receive an email from the assassin himself. Lieutenant Dave McCall, head of Montreal's Special Homicide Task Force, needs help to crack the secrets of the killer's taunting message. He calls on an expert, Chris Barry, who runs a security firm specializing in computer communications. Together, McCall and Barry launch a grim quest to track down a man who preys on predators - an urgent quest to bring this remorseless killer to justice.
But whose justice will prevail: theirs--or the vigilante's?
The Consultant
Book 2 of the Vigilante Series
The friendly takeover of CSS Inc. leaves computer executive Chris Barry unemployed, very wealthy and pleased with the situation. But the hiatus is short-lived. . . As a result of his involvement in the recent ‘Vigilante’ investigation, Barry is approached by Jonathan Addley and invited to join ‘Discreet Activities’, a government agency of the clandestine variety. Accepting, he promptly takes on his first assignment under the guise of an IT consultant, to investigate possible links between a local import business and the murder of its MIS director. As he discovers the firm is being used to import narcotics, his cover is blown and things get personal, spurring him to show that murderers, drug lords, biker gangs and kidnappers are no match for. . . The Consultant. . .
Mind Games
Book 3 of the Vigilante Series
Montreal is plagued by a string of vicious sex slayings. . . Captain Dave McCall and his Special Homicide Task Force are in a frustrated frenzy as they try to bring an end to the savage butchery. . . Assisting officially is noted psychiatrist, Doctor Samuel Bowman and unofficially, computer genius and multi-millionaire, Chris Barry. . . With each passing day, McCall works his way closer to the truth. . . Unaware that they are heading deep into the deadly core of. . . Mind Games. . .
The Homeless Killer
Book 4 of the Vigilante Series
The homeless of Montreal are dying at the hand of 'Allan', a serial killer set on ridding the city of street people. . . As the killer taunts the police about the increasing body count, Captain Dave McCall calls on the services Jonathan Addley and Chris Barry, both operatives with the government's clandestine 'Discreet Activities' team. . . All while fighting the city's proposed by-law banning the homeless from downtown parks, philanthropist and activist, William Enright, joins the law-enforcement crusade to capture the assassin. . . But will the combined efforts of the law and old money be sufficient to stop the Homeless Killer?
6 Hours 42 Minutes
Book 5 of the Vigilante Series
Though most of them dabbled in a variety of criminal activities, they weren't experienced in this particular field and had never been involved in a job like this before. However, with proper planning, careful organization and the inside information available to them, they were certain that this bank heist would be a piece of cake. Ten minutes, in and out, was all it would take and they'd be sharing 2.5 million dollars. Nothing could go wrong as they had thought of everything. . .How could they possibly know that a new member of the board was visiting the bank that morning?How could they know that the new board member was Chris Barry?
Discreet Activities
Book 6 of the Vigilante Series
As a result of information gathered via electronic surveillance by intelligence agencies in the U.S. and Canada, a budding terrorist organization, the Army for Islam or AFI, is suspected of planning an attack, its target possibly NYC, Burlington, Vermont or even Canada's famed Montreal. . . When four foreign students from Pakistan with known ties to the AFI's Montreal cell arrive in the area on New Year's Eve, Discreet Activities' head, Jonathan Addley, along with Chris Barry and other DA consultants are more than willing to take on the additional workload. . . After two of the DA team members die violently in an AFI related suicide-bombing, the job becomes getting revenge on those responsible for this Holy War...
ASYLUM
As Managing Director of the “Montreal Hospital for the Criminally Insane”, Doctor Matthew Russell has always put his professional responsibilities ahead of all else. That is, until he one day realizes he is losing his wife, Cassidy, and his two children, Stuart and Jennifer. . . With only his family in mind, Russell takes an adventure-filled, impromptu vacation of indefinite duration, leaving all else behind and stopping at nothing to show how much he cares for his loved ones in an effort to win them back. But, will he succeed . . Or, will it prove to be all too late in the end?
Learn more about Claude Bouchard’s books
Visit http://www.claudebouchardbooks.com
Questions or comments?
Email at claude@claudebouchardbooks.com